Football offensive player of the year: Aaron Evans' competitiveness elevates Woodside

It took 44 years for someone to do it, and Gloucester's Ray Harris deserved all the accolades he received. He was the Dukes' offense, after all, in becoming the first player in Peninsula District history to both rush and pass for 1,000 yards in the same season.

A year later, Woodside's Aaron Evans matched that milestone. But he also led the Wolverines to 11 wins — the most in school history — and to the Eastern Region Division 6 championship game.

Evans' individual numbers are fascinating, but alone they wouldn't have meant nearly as much. The winning put him over the top as Daily Press Offensive Player of the Year for 2009.

True, he had plenty of help from his teammates. But in the end — and ask Dan Marino if you don't believe it — quarterbacks are judged by wins and losses.

"To me, that was the most important thing," Evans said. "We talked about the numbers at the beginning of the year, but the most important thing all along was winning. I really don't care if I had zero yards rushing and passing. All I cared about was winning."

"He's so competitive," he said. "He wants to win, and that had a lot to do with our success. He had the stats, but the most important thing was the winning."

The Wolverines began the season with a win over Hampton, only the second time they had ever beaten the Crabbers. They led eventual state Division 5 champion Phoebus in the final seconds before losing on a field goal.

Woodside was close to reaching the state semifinals. Midway through the fourth quarter, the Wolverines led Oscar Smith 14-13. But the Tigers scored two unanswered touchdowns to end Woodside's season.

A month later, the pain from that loss has faded and the feeling of accomplishment has taken over.

"We had our banquet the other night and we were looking back on our season," Evans said. "We had a pretty good year. We just wish we could have kept it up."

Evans, who has committed to Old Dominion, did everything that could have been asked of him. He completed 87-of-156 passes (56 percent) for 1,522 yards with 17 touchdowns. And he ran for 1,261 yards on 194 carries (6.5 per) with 15 TDs.

Evans edged out Bruton's Lorenzo Taliaferro, who finished with 1,678 yards and 21 touchdowns. He ran for 644 yards and nine touchdowns in four playoff games, leading the Panthers to the Group AA Division 3 state final.

Also in the running was Phoebus tailback Colby Goodwyn, who finished with 1,869 yards and 29 touchdowns.

Evans was steady all season, starting with his 298-yard day (110 rushing, 188 passing) vs. Hampton. His best day came against Bethel, when he rushed for 163 yards and three touchdowns and threw for 210 and one. He was a remarkable 11-of-11 for 283 yards in a win over Gloucester.

It was Evans' creativity that gave opposing coaches headaches.

"He runs the offense very well when they are executing properly," Denbigh coach Marcellus Harris III said earlier this season. "But he probably runs it even better when a play is broken."

At 5-foot-8, Evans faces an interesting situation as he enters college football. He was recruited by Old Dominion as "an athlete," which means the Monarchs see multiple possibilities for him. For now, he's been told he'll come in as a cornerback and kick returner.

But ODU is clearly not against using a quarterback with non-traditional size. The Monarchs' starter this season was 5-11 Thomas DeMarco, a dual threat who led ODU in rushing and passing.

"They told me to keep it warm," Evans said, referring to his quarterback skills. "But they just want to put me wherever I can help the team win."